Dang it!

[racsan]

the dimmer switch for the headlights used to be on the floor.

 

[Dirtman]

You have a pedal for the washer fluid too?

There was no washer fluid. But the wipers were manually operated, used the same handle to turn them as the windows.

 

[Curious Hound]

No it doesn’t... I wasn’t alive in the early 70’s.

Why not?

 

[Curious Hound]

Leave fuses out or battery disconnected
You can unbolt the ignition switch under the steering column(above brake pedal)
Pull it down and out, check that it slides OK and has START return spring working, so its not the problem
Plug it back in to its harness, and put switch in OFF position, 4 positions, ACC OFF RUN START
Hook power back up

Slide it to RUN and dash should light up, then slide it to START, clutch pedal down or Shifter in PARK
And it should start
You can use it this way but NO KEY REQUIRED, lol

Yes, you need to pull steering wheel and disassemble most the the steering column to fix an actuator rod issue depending on whats broken

Loads of videos on doing that, most Ford trucks of similar years used the same parts and setup

Thanks Ron. I ordered an actuator rod from Amazon. Will probably tear into all that on Monday afternoon and Tuesday when I'm off work.

Stayed up til 11:00 last night working in the rain to get the non-A/C blower fan housing into the Ranger. That was harder than getting the A/C version out. Got up early this morning to put everything else back together and fill the coolant system. Was on the road by 8:30 to make a FB Marketplace transaction over an hour away. That little Ranger always comes through.

 

[RonD]

I remember when "we" got our first car with locking steering wheel
Dad let me borrow it one Sat night, had to be home by 12.........................
Was after 1, lol, so I switch off the key when turning into uphill driveway to coast in quietly, so still had some speed, had done this before but in older cars, without locking steering wheels
OOPS, you know those locks DO NOT release when you are pulling hard on the steering wheel, lol

Hit the brakes but still sideswiped a palm tree on the lawn, made a good racket, light in house came on..........................wasn't a good night

 

[Curious Hound]

This is not a fun project.

New part ready to go in.

 

[dvdswan]

At least it is well lit and not in a shady dark area.

 

[racsan]

I had to replace one of those on a 93 taurus- it wasnt fun either.

 

[Curious Hound]

Got it done. Took all day. But no extra parts left over. I also replaced some plastic bushings for the column shift rod. I hope I never have to do that again.

 

[wildbill23c]

Got it done. Took all day. But no extra parts left over. I also replaced some plastic bushings for the column shift rod. I hope I never have to do that again.

So what you are saying is, if that happens again your fix will be buying a different truck LOL. Sounds like most of the things I work on in my Ranger or Bronco 2, by the time I disassemble the vehicle to get to the $5 part, I'm ready to send the truck to the crusher LOL.

The lug nuts on my Bronco 2 were really short after swapping wheels with wheels that have center caps, so I ordered replacement lug nuts so I don't have to take center caps off on the side of the road if I have a flat tire. I swear they had the impact gun at the tire shop set to the super heman setting, couldn't even break a couple of them loose with my breaker bar, finally was able to get them loose with my 1/2" impact but I guess that wheel wasn't coming off LOL. Turned what should have taken a few minutes into an almost an hour project because of the over tightened lug nuts.

I think the easiest thing I've done was replace the turn signal switch assembly in the Bronco 2....as far as everything I've worked on I think that has been the easiest repair I've ever done LOL.

 

[wildbill23c]

the dimmer switch for the headlights used to be on the floor.

That's where the dimmer switch is in my 88 F250. Everything else is on the turn signal arm.

 

[Curious Hound]

So what you are saying is, if that happens again your fix will be buying a different truck LOL.

Not really. I can do it again, easier and faster. But I would prefer not to. There are a couple steps that took some ingenuity.

 

[racsan]

If I remember right I took the whole colmn off the taurus and brought it in to the house to work on.

 

[Curious Hound]

If I remember right I took the whole colmn off the taurus and brought it in to the house to work on.

Did that. The guy in the youtube video recommended filing down the new piece so it could be inserted without taking the whole assembly apart. I didn't like that idea. So I figured out how to get the other sliding pieces out of the column. Cleaned it all up and used new grease for re-assembly.

Compressing the spring to install the retaining clip on the shaft behind the clock spring assembly was entertaining.

 

[Dirtman]